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First Name: Charles

Last Name: Wald

Birthplace:

Gender: Male

Branch: Air Force (1947 - present)



Middle Name: F.



Date of Birth: 1948



Rank: General

Years Served: 1971-2006
Charles F. Wald
'Chuck'

   
Engagements:
•  Vietnam War (1960 - 1973)

Biography:

Charles "Chuck" F. Wald

General, U.S. Air Force

Charles "Chuck" F. Wald was born in 1948 and graduated from Bishop Ryan High School in Minot, ND. He then attended North Dakota State University and was a president of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity and a starting wide receiver of the Bison football team. In the 1970 NFL Draft, Chuck Wald was selected in the 14th round by the Atlanta Falcons.

Wald earned his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force through the Air Force ROTC program at North Dakota State University in 1971.

He has combat time as an O-2A forward air controller in Vietnam and as an F-16 pilot flying over Bosnia. He served as a T-37 Instructor Pilot and F-15 Flight Commander. Other duties include Chief of the U.S. Air Force Combat Terrorism Center, Support Group Commander, Operations Group Commander, and Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff for National Defense Review. He was also the Director of Strategic Planning and Policy at Headquarters U.S. Air Force, and served on the Joint Staff as the Vice Director for Strategic Plans and Policy.

He commanded the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, where on 30 August 1995, he led one of the wing's initial strike packages against the ammunition depot at Pale, Bosnia-Herzegovina, in one of the first NATO combat operations. He also commanded the 9th Air Force and U.S. Central Command Air Forces, Shaw AFB, SC, where he led the development of the Afghanistan air campaign for Operation Enduring Freedom, including the idea of embedding tactical air control parties in ground special operations forces. Wald has also served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations at the Pentagon.

On 1 January 2003, Wald was promoted to the four-star rank of General and assigned as Deputy Commander, Headquarters U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany.

General Wald retired from the Air Force on 1 July 2006. During his service, he became a Command Pilot with over 3,600 flying hours, including more than 430 combat hours over Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Iraq and Bosnia, in: C-20, O-2, G-35 Gulfstream, T-37, T-38, F16 and F-15 aircraft.

Education

1971 Bachelor of Arts degree in Pre-law, North Dakota State University

1975 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, AL

1982 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL

1982 Master of Political Science degree in International Relations, Troy State University

1990 National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, DC

1993 Program for Senior Officials in National Security, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA

Assignments

February 1971 - January 1972, student, undergraduate pilot training, Williams AFB, AZ.

May 1972 - February 1973, forward air controller, Da Nang AB, South Vietnam.

May 1973 - May 1976, Instructor Pilot and Wing Flight Examiner, Air Training Command, Craig AFB, AL.

December 1976 - August 1978, Project Officer, Operational Systems Engineering Branch, Norton AFB, CA.

August 1978 - August 1981, F-15A Aircraft Commander, Instructor Pilot and Flight Commander, 22nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, Bitburg AB, West Germany.

August 1981 - September 1982, student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL.

September 1982 - August 1985, Flight Commander, Assistant Operations and Operations Officer, 71st Tactical Fighter Squadron, Langley AFB, VA.

August 1985 - August 1989, Chief, Strategic North Atlantic Treaty Organization Branch; later, Chief, Strategic and Middle East-Africa Branch; later, Chief, U.S. Air Force Combat Terrorism Center; later, Assistant Executive Officer to the Air Force Chief of Staff, Washington, DC.

August 1989 - July 1990, student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington.

July 1990 - March 1993, Deputy Commander for Operations, 86th Tactical Fighter Wing; later, Commander, 86th Support Group; later, Commander, 86th Operations Group, Ramstein AB, Germany.

March 1993 - September 1993, Executive Officer to Deputy Chief of Staff of Operations, Boerfink AB, Germany.

September 1993 - May 1995, Executive Officer to Director of Operations and U.S. Senior National Representative, Headquarters Allied Air Forces Central Europe, Ramstein AB, Germany.

May 1995 - July 1997, Commander, 31st Fighter Wing, Aviano AB, Italy.

July 1997 - January 1998, Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff for National Defense Review, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington.

January 1998 - October 1998, Director of Strategic Planning and Policy, Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington.

October 1998 - January 2000, Vice Director for Strategic Plans and Policy, the Joint Staff, Washington.

January 2000 - November 2001, Commander, 9th Air Force and U.S. Central Command Air Forces, Shaw AFB, SC.

November 2001 - December 2002, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington.

December 2002 - July 2006, Deputy Commander, Headquarters U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany.

Promotion Dates

Second Lieutenant - 3 February 1971
First Lieutenant - 3 August 1972
Captain - 3 February 1975
Major - 24 October 1980
Lieutenant Colonel - 1 February 1986
Colonel - 1 March 1991
Brigadier General - 1 February 1996
Major General - 1 September 1998
Lieutenant General - 12 January 2000
General - 1 January 2003

Medals, Awards & Badges

Defense Distinguished Service Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Distinguished Flying Cross with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Air Medal with Silver Oak Leaf Cluster
Aerial Achievement Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal
Presidential Unit Citation with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Joint Meritorious Unit Award with 2 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor Device and Silver Oak Leaf Cluster
Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with 4 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Combat Readiness Medal
National Defense Service Medal with 2 Bronze Service Stars
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Vietnam Service Medal with 1 Bronze Service Star
Southwest Asia Service Medal with 1 Bronze Service Star
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Armed Forces Service Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Air Force Expeditionary Service Ribbon with Gold Border
Vietnam Cross of Gallantry Medal with Palm
NATO Medal (Yugoslavia)
Vietnam Campaign Medal
Command Pilot Badge
Joint Chief of Staff Identification Badge
Headquarters Air Force Badge

He also received these foreign medals:

French National Order of Merit (Rank of Commander)
Gold Cross of Honor of the German Armed Forces
Inter-American Defense Board Medal with Silver Star

Honors

Department of State Superior Honor Award
North Dakota Distinguished Service Medal
Honorary Doctorate of Laws, North Dakota State University
Defense Intelligence Agency Directors Award

In Retirement

General Wald is Director and Senior Advisor to the Aerospace & Defense Industry for Deloitte LLP, and is responsible for providing senior leadership in strategy and relationships with defense contractors and Department of Defense (DOD) program executives. He is a subject matter specialist in weapons procurement and deployment, counter terrorism, national, energy and international security policy.

Prior to joining Deloitte, General Wald was the Vice President, International Programs for L-3 Communications Corporation, based in Washington, DC.

Wald has argued that there is a military option for a strike against Iran.



Honoree ID: 855   Created by: MHOH

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